20 Key People in the Civil War

1. Abraham Lincoln
(1809-1865)

Abraham Lincoln was by far the most important character
of the Civil War. Being the 16th president, he was also one
of the top representatives of the Union. During the Civil
war, he makes a huge, key decision by putting Ulysses S.
Grant in charge of all northern armies after finding him
favorable and dependable in his eyes. Along with this, he
stuck with his pro-union policy despite all the threats and
warnings that he received. In January 1, 1863, he puts the
Emancipation Proclamation into effect, which declared
freedom for all slaves in areas of the Confederacy despite
the war not being over. Despite all these controversial
actions, Lincoln wins the war, and completes the freedom
of slaves.
Union

Jefferson Davis
(1808-1889)

Jefferson Davis was the first president of the Confederate
States. After the Mexican war, he is voted into the US
Senate as a Democrat in 1847. Until 1857, he remains a
spokesman for slavery and states’ rights but is then voted as
the 1
st
president of the Confederate states. Unfortunately, he
made some poor choices as a leader, like choosing his
friends for some of the most important positions in the
government when it was obvious that they wouldn’t do so
well. Due to these poor choices, it’s fair to say that he
didn’t succeed as a leader. By the end of the war, Davis
flees from Richmond in hopes of continuing the war deep
south or organizes a government in exile, but all fails in the
end and he ends up in prison.
Confederacy

Robert E. Lee
(1807-1870)


Robert E. Lee was the youngest son of the major-general
Henry Lee, and a general in the Confederate army. Feeling
that his loyal services belonged more to the Confederacy
than the Union, Lee rejects the offer to lead a Union army
and joins the south. After failing to stop the invasion of
Virginia, Lee won a number of important victories, like the
Seven Days’ Battle in June 62’. Unfortunately, in the end,
Robert E. Lee goes down in the history books as the men
who surrendered to U. Grant and thus, end the war after
being trapped at the Appomatox court house. He brilliantly
held off Grant’s forces several times, but just couldn’t seize
the initiative and take offense.
Confederacy
Ulysses S. Grant
(1822-1885)
Ulysses S. Grant became a lieutenant General in the war,
but started small by being the colonel of the “Governor
Gate’s Hellions.” From here on, Grant just kept on climbing
the ladder. In the beginning, he makes some hasty and
careless decisions that nearly cost him huge defeats, like his
not-so-well prepared attack on Belmont. However, he soon
makes up for these actions by helping other generals in the
war with reinforcements. During these times, he greatly
impressed Abraham Lincoln with his self-reliance, and so,
was placed in charge of all Northern armies. He and
Sherman work together to corner Lee after several months
of continuous fights, and earned General Lee’s surrender to
win the war. U. Grant was a perfect example of a case
where making mistakes strongly strengthened the person in
the end.
Union

2. Thomas Jackson
(1824-1863)

Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson was one of the most
dependent generals for the Confederacy during the Civil
War. After joining the Confederate army in early 1861, he
earns his nickname after people noticed how his brigades
always stood straight (like stonewall). After winning the
difficult battle in the Shenadoah Valley, Jackson joins Lee
for the defense of Richmond. He records several more
important victories before his death, like the one at
Chancellorsville where he attacked the flank of the federal
army. In the end, Jackson dies from pneumonia in May 10
th

after being shot by one of his one men, who thought that he
was an intruder. Losing Jackson was a huge blow to
Southern state’s hopes, and even Lee was unsure of how to
replace him afterwards. Due to the immense amount of
dependence that was put on Jackson, one may say that
losing him caused the South to lose the war.
Confederacy

General Pierre Gustave
Toutant de Beauregard
(1818 – 1893)

P.G.T Beauregard was a general of the South Carolina
militia. Under the orders of the Jefferson Davis, his army
attacked Fort Sumter, which caused the Civil War. He was
also one of eight full generals of the Confederate army. His
greatest achievements were his victory in the First Battle of
Manassas or the First Battle of Bull Run as well as
successfully defending Charleston from 1862-1864.
Confederacy
Henry Clay
(1777-1852)
Henry Clay was known for his great oratory skills as well as
a being a great compromiser. He proposed two
compromises: The Missouri Compromise of 1820 and The
Compromised of 1850. He played a significant role in the
pre-civil war era. He tried to bring peace among the
Southern and Northern States by these compromises. The
first compromise held strong for about the first 3 decades,
until the Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional in
1857. However, the second compromise didn’t do so well.
The North and South weren’t satisfied with the
Compromise of 1850. Both regions were thought this
compromise wasn’t fair, which caused a further rift between
them.
Union

Stephen A. Douglas
(1813-1861)
Stephen A. Douglas was a very powerful and influential
political leader. His political views were westward
expansion and democratic. He really tried hard to maintain
peace between the North and the South. So, he came up
with the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which supported popular
sovereignty to declare whether states should be free state or
a slave state. However, his attempt to please both regions
caused further division between them. Also, his ambition to
become President caused a division between the
Democratic Party in the election of 1860, allowing
Abraham Lincoln to win.
Union

John C. Calhoun John C. Calhoun played many different roles during the Confederacy

3. (1782-1850)

pre-civil war era. None the less, he played a very important
role. He ended up taking the role as a representative of
South Carolina, defending slavery and states rights. He
strongly believed that if the issue of slavery wasn’t
resolved, it would soon tear apart the nation in two.
Although he didn’t want the South to secede the union, he
felt that great measures should be taken for their rights.
Although he didn’t live to see the Civil War, he was a great
orator and defender for the South. He further increased their
belief that their rights should be protected, and if not,
separate from the Union.

William Techumseh
Sherman
(1820-1891)
Sherman was a general for the Union during the civil war.
Sherman in his military career had many ups and downs.
Some of the assignments he had during his career included
being colonel of the 13th infantry in May 14 1861,
commanding brigade in Division of the Potomac in August
17- 28 1861 and many more. Sherman was well known for
taking Chattanooga, Atlanta even Savannah from the
Confederates and to offer it as a Christmas present to the
Union. William Sherman earned the “Thanks of Congress”
twice for his successes in these three battles.
Union
George McClellan
(1826-1885)
George McClellan was a general for the Union during the
civil war. McClellan was a very young thirty- six year old
general who was an outstanding organizer and excellent
strategist. Although McClellan was extremely slow in
making decisions, he was still a great general. He was
placed was commander of the Army of the Potomac by
president Lincoln after the Confederates defeated the Union
at the battle of Bull Run. In a campaign known as the
Peninsula Campaign during the summer of 1852, McClellan
led his army to capture the base of the Confederate Army in
Richmond in which they were eventually able to push the
Confederates out.
Union

George Pickett
(1825-1875)
George Pickett was a Confederate general during the civil
war. Even though Pickett had been defeated and failed
many times, he did have a few successes in his resume. He
is best known for his courage in Gettysburg called
“Pickett’s Charge” one of the bloodiest and costliest battles
of the civil war. In this battle, he was known for his bravery
in fighting and not surrendering with all his effort.
Confederacy

4. Clara Barton
(1821-1912)
Clara Barton was known as the “angel of the battlefield” for
her role as a nurse during the Civil war. Although she was a
supporter of the Union, she healed soldiers from both sides
and thus, quickly gained the support from various generals
like James Wadsworth. Sure, there were a lot of nurses, but
she was very distinctive as she treated soldiers on the
battlefield instead of carrying them to the hospitals, as
many died on their way. Due to these brave actions, she
became the superintendent of nurses. Other than being a
nurse, Clara also built an office that was in charge of
finding out what happened to the missing soldiers of the
war. Although she wasn’t a general, her contributions were
just as important.
Union
Harriet Beecher Stowe
(1811 – 1896)


Harriet Beecher Stowe was a crucial figure before the Civil
War. Her book, Uncle Tom’s Cabin influenced many
people in the North to go against slavery. This book was
extremely powerful as it convinced many to believe that
slavery would corrupt this nation. Her fame allowed her to
become a key figure in speaking against anti-slavery. In
1862, even President Lincoln who met Stowe said, “So you
are the little woman who wrote the book that started this
great war!"
Union

Dred Scott
(1799-1858)

Not necessarily the person, but the decision the court had
made from his lawsuit caused great controversy prior to the
Civil War. Dred Scott, a slave, filed a suit against Irene
Emerson saying that since he and his wife lived in Illinois
and the Wisconsin Territory, free states, they should be
granted freedom. This case went all the way up to the
Supreme Court where they decided that Dred Scott should
stay a slave. Chief Justice Roger B. Taney added that slaves
weren’t allowed to file a suit since they weren’t citizens and
that slaves were property so they can never gain their
freedom even in a free state. This made the Missouri
Compromise of 1820 unconstitutional. This decision made
by the court, angered many abolitionists. The people
eventually formed the Republican party to make sure that
slavery doesn’t expand. The Republican Party gained
enough momentum to get their candidate for President,
Abraham Lincoln elected.
Union
John Brown
(1800-1859)



John Brown was an influential abolitionist who caused
further division between the North and South, leading up to
the Civil War. He believed that he was chosen by God to
end slavery. His first act was when he killed five pro
slavery looters which sparked a mass of violent raids
throughout Kansas. His second act was when he led 21 men
to Virginia to steal the Federal’s arsenal at Harpers Ferry in
order to start a slave rebellion. His raid was going well as
he attempted to isolate the town, but word got through and
the Federal Army eventually captured them. He was tried
and sentenced to be hanged. The people in the North
praised John Brown as a martyr, which angered the South
causing tension and separation between the two regions.
Union

5. Thaddeus Stevens
(1792-1868)

Thaddeus Stevens was a leading spokesman for the Radical
Republicans who fought to win civil rights for African
Americans. In 1856, he was elected in the Antislavery
Republican Party and was known as the “Great
Commoner.” He was a fighter for emancipation and black
suffrage. Stevens helped draft the Fourteenth Amendment
and the Reconstruction Act in 1867. He was a big leading
role for African Americans who had just been set free. He
fought against many of the South’s ideas and was
considered the savior of public education in Pennsylvania.
Stevens was also well known for his fiery attitude and
passion towards trying to impeach president Johnson.
Union

Charlotte Forten
(1837-1914)

Charlotte Forten was a big antislavery woman who was a
poet, teacher and abolitionist. She was also one of the first
northern African American to go to the south to be a
schoolteacher to former slaves. In 1856, a year after the
civil was had ended, she moved to Salem to teach at Epes
Grammar School. With her help and many other teachers,
these children were able to get the type of education they
never had and have a new life that they had never had.
During this time, her talent for poetry emerged and her
works came up in famous antislavery publications such as
the Liberator and Anglo African magazine. She was later
forced back to move north due to sickness and was sad to
leave her children in Salem. After this experience, Forten
continued to do her antislavery work and was involved in
meeting with famous antislavery members such as William
Lloyd Garrison and Ralph Waldo Emerson.
Union

Blanche Kelso Bruce
(1841-1898)
Blanche Kelso Bruce was a former slave and was the first
black man elected to serve a full term in the senate. As a
member of the Senate, Bruce encouraged matters where
African Americans didn’t have the same rights as others
did. This included asking the government to be more
generous to giving land to black emigrants in the west and
distribution of clothes to poor blacks. He was a big fighter
of African American rights.
Union

Andrew Johnson
(1808-1875)

Andrew Johnson was the 17
th
president after Abraham
Lincoln. When the civil war ended, President Johnson
formed a reconstruction plan that would allow the
Confederates to quickly reunite with the Union. Johnson
was a man that did not show favor to rich plantation owners
but rather, to the poor. In reality, Johnson issued pardons to
those who asked him personally and in 1865; Johnson had
issued it to 13,000 southerners. Even though Johnson was
helpful and an honorable man, he was unfortunate since the
Congress overruled things that Andrew Johnson vetoed.
Because of this, it was hard for him to be as effective in his
presidency as Lincoln was.
Union